


Too Few Elements

by Electrons



Series: The Avatar and the Doctor [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:16:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25149073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Electrons/pseuds/Electrons
Summary: Nine, Rose and Jack land on a fascinating planet populated by a strange people, many of whom have unique abilities. They promptly get themselves arrested, because, well, they are themselves. Rose wants to adopt the Firelord. The Doctor is fascinated by the culture. Jack really, really wants to learn how to firebend. If everyone could stop being adorable for two minutes this would all go a lot smoother.
Relationships: Mai/Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Suki (Avatar)
Series: The Avatar and the Doctor [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851358
Comments: 303
Kudos: 631





	1. Volcanoes Are Awesome Vacation Spots

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this because I don't have any impulse control. This takes place between Boom Town and Bad Wolf for DW and a little less than a year after the end of the war for ATLA. I tried to rein Rose in, but she wouldn't stop being adorable.

"Right then!" The Doctor took his hand off the lever. "Here we are."

"That's vague," Jack said. "Does here have a name?"

"Must do," the Doctor replied. "Unless no one has ever been here before. Then we'll just have to name it ourselves."

"Dibs," Rose shouted. "Dibs on naming the new planet!"

Jack crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't have any idea where we are, do you?"

"Not a jot," the Doctor said with a grin that was far too pleased with itself. "I put her on the random setting, just for a laugh."

"Well hang on," Rose said. "How do we know we didn't randomly land inside a volcano or at the bottom of the ocean?"

"TARDIS wouldn't let that happen," the Doctor assured her.

"Now explain to me how the TARDIS being on the random setting is any different from your normal driving," Jack said.

The Doctor wagged a finger in his face. "Shut it you. Elsewise you won't get to see the beauty of… wherever we are."

"You make it sound so alluring. How is a fella supposed to resist?"

"How indeed," Rose responded as she stepped up to the doors and threw them open with a dramatic flourish.

The trio emerged onto an uneven stone surface. Rose burst into laughter. She was standing not a few metres from the crater of a volcano. "Literally! Literally right on top of a volcano!" She doubled over with laughter.

The Doctor shot the TARDIS a betrayed look as he whipped out his sonic screwdriver and took some readings. "It's dormant," he protested while Rose continued to laugh.

"Yeah, but still," Jack said, which was a great point despite its inelegant delivery.

Rose straightened as she wiped tears out of her eyes. "Oh, that was too perfect."

"Alright, laugh it up," the Doctor said.

"I will."

"She did," Jack said.

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Are we going to take a look around or not?"

"Alright, alright," Rose said. She frowned. "Doctor!" She pointed at something behind him.

The Doctor whirled around. Three people in heavy armor were running towards them. The Doctor had nothing against armor itself, but people wearing it tended to also have weapons, and that he was less keen on. The woman in front of the trio leveled a spear at them. Sometimes the Doctor hated how often he was right.

"Halt! In the name of the Firelord, I order you to surrender."

"Pfft." Rose giggled. "Firelord?"

The soldiers gave her an incredulous look. Jack shot her a maybe-don't-antagonize-them smile. The Doctor just bit his lip to hold in his own chuckle.

"Sorry." Rose cleared her throat. "It's a bit basic though, isn't it," she couldn't resist saying. "I mean, what, does the water king live next door?" She snickered at her own wit.

The three soldiers exchanged bewildered glances with one another. A man in his late twenties or early thirties spoke up. "The Water Tribes don't have kings. Are you talking about the Earth King?"

Rose snorted. Jack kicked her in the ankle. "I'm sorry! That's just objectively funny!"

"Who are you," the woman that appeared to be the leader demanded. "How did you get up here? Are you assassins?"

"Assassins? Us?" The Doctor looked offended, which he was. "We're tourists."

"We came to see the sights," Jack agreed.

"We just loooove volcanoes," Rose enthused.

The Doctor put on his why-me smile and glanced at Rose. "How long are we going to be going on about that for?"

"Until it stops being funny," Rose said.

"A while," Jack translated.

"Got that. Thanks Jack."

"No problem."

"You're all under arrest!" The woman in charge of the soldiers seemed frustrated by their laid-back attitude. "What's in the box?"

"What box," the Doctor asked.

"That box!" She gestured with her spear. "It looks like it was made by the Water Tribe. What is it? How did you get it up here?"

"Ohhh," the Doctor said with exaggerated comprehension. "This box?"

"Yes," the woman said through gritted teeth. "That box."

"Haven't a clue," the Doctor said with a shrug.

"It's not ours," Rose added.

"Never seen it before," was Jack's contribution.

The woman nodded at the soldier that had spoken earlier about the Earth King, which Rose thought sounded like a better gig than Firelord. Earth encompassed pretty much everywhere people lived, right? No one lived IN fire. What was this Firelord even lord of, really? Rose didn't voice these thoughts to the soldiers though. She didn't want them to get tetchy.

"Open it," the woman commanded the soldier.

The soldier walked up to the door and glanced at the pull to open sign. He pulled the handle. "It's locked," he said.

"Maybe try pushing it," said the third soldier that hadn't spoken before.

"Sign says to pull," the soldier said in an annoyed tone of voice.

"It does say pull," the Doctor agreed.

"Just try it," the woman in charge snapped.

The soldier shrugged and then pushed the door. It didn't open. "It's locked," he said again.

"We'll take the prisoners to the palace and have the Firelord decide what to do with them," the woman in charge said. "We'll send someone else up to retrieve this strange… whatever it is."

"Says Police Box," Rose supplied helpfully.

"What's a Police Box," the soldier who did know the difference between push and pull asked. "Is it some weird Water Tribe thing?"

The soldier who didn't know the difference between push and pull scoffed in derision. "They're not from the Water Tribe. Look at them!"

"What's wrong with the way I look," Jack demanded.

"People from the Water Tribes are dark-skinned," the dim soldier said. "And they don't have yellow hair. I've never seen anyone with yellow hair before. Where are you people from?"

"Maybe they're from the Earth Kingdom," the less dim soldier said. "There's all kinds of weird people in the Earth Kingdom."

"It doesn't matter where they're from," the soldier in charge snapped. "They're trespassers, and they're dangerous. Now," she addressed the Doctor. "Are you and your friends going to cooperate, or are you going to make things difficult?"

The Doctor glanced at her spear. "I'm leaning towards cooperate," he said.

She nodded. "Are you benders?"

Rose lost it. She dissolved into peals of laughter. She had to grab onto Jack's shoulder to support herself as she shook with mirth. "Are we- are we what?! Did she just-" Rose's voice was lost to laughter.

"Is she alright," less dim asked, looking alarmed.

"Yeah, she just has a medical condition," the Doctor assured them.

"What sort of medical condition? Does she need a physician," the woman in charge asked. "Is it contagious?" She took a step back.

"No, it's genetic," the Doctor assured her. "Her mother passed it onto her, poor thing. Terminal thickness."

Rose straightened up and wiped her eyes. "I can hurt you," she told the Doctor.

"But you love me too much."

"I can hurt him for you," Jack offered Rose.

"But you love him too much," Rose said.

"That I do," Jack admitted.

"Alright, enough!" The soldier in charge looked ready to impale one of them, or all of them at once if they would be so good as to line up in a straight row for her. "Answer the question!"

"What was the question again," Rose asked with a brilliant smile.

"Don't repeat it," Jack and the Doctor said at the same time.

Rose pouted.

"Sergeant," less dim began. "Do you think they might have escaped from that new mental health hospital? You know, the one Princess Azula is at?"

"Maybe," the Sergeant said. "Let's just get them to the palace. Bind their hands."

Less dim and dim put metal manacles on the Doctor, Rose and Jack. Once that was done, the Sergeant cast a last confounded look at the TARDIS and then escorted them down from the volcano. The Doctor gave the TARDIS a parting glance as well, but his was one of fondness.

"Hey," Rose said. "What're your names?"

Dim and less dim glanced at each other. "I'm Itsu," Dim said. "This is Kazu."

Kazu smiled at Rose and she smiled back.

"So, do you like your job," Rose asked Kazu.

"I like it a lot more now that the war is over," Kazu said.

"What war," Rose asked.

All three soldiers gave Rose baffled looks. "The one hundred years war," Kazu said.

"The one that's been going on for a hundred years," Itsu elaborated unnecessarily. "Or was anyway. It's over now."

"Well I'm glad we missed that," the Doctor said. "I hate wars, nasty unpleasant business."

"So this Firelord guy," Rose prodded. "What's his deal? Is he nice?"

"The Firelord," the Sergeant began in a tone equal parts pompous, disdainful and reverent. "Is the Sun Spirit's chosen ruler over our great and glorious nation. He is a war hero and a firebending Master. He has brought peace to our country and is healing the fractured soul of the Fire Nation."

"Uh-huh," Rose said, because she had no idea what else to say to all of that.

"He's pretty nice," Kazu said in answer to her original question.

The Sergeant scowled.

"What's firebending," Jack asked.

Again, all three soldiers stared at them in disbelief. "Seriously," Itsu asked. He held out his hand, palm up, and a flame burst out of it.

"Wow!" Rose marveled at his hand. "How did you do that?!"

"I'm a Firebender," Itsu said slowly, as if he was talking to a small and not at all bright child. That was a bit rich coming from someone who didn't know the difference between push and pull.

"Can you all do that," Rose asked Kazu.

Kazu shook his head. "No, the Sergeant and I aren't Firebenders. I prefer my sword anyway. Itsu's not even that good really-"

"You're just jealous," Itsu said with a scowl.

"The Firelord though? He's amazing. He taught the Avatar Firebending," Kazu said in a tone of awe that felt a lot more authentic than the Sergeant's earlier pomp.

"Who's the Avatar," the Doctor asked.

That earned them yet another set of incredulous looks from the trio of soldiers. "You're kidding, right," Itsu asked.

"Think it should be obvious by now that we aren't," Jack said.

"The Avatar? Seriously? You don't know who the Avatar is? The Avatar?"

"Yeah, we're clear on the name, thanks," the Doctor said.

"The Avatar is the Master of all four elements," Kazu said.

"There's more than four elements," the Doctor said.

Rose shushed him. "By Master of the elements, do you mean that he can do that thing that Itsu did?"

"Yeah, and he can earthbend, waterbend and airbend too. He's the last Airbender."

"Why is he the last one," the Doctor asked. He sounded serious for the first time since they had arrived. His face was somber. Rose reached out with her manacled hands and clutched one of his. He squeezed her hand in thanks.

Kazu rubbed the back of his neck. He looked embarrassed. "We kind of… killed them all?"

"Well  _ we _ didn't," Itsu corrected. "It was a hundred years ago."

"That's how the war started," Kazu explained.

"Enough talking," the Sergeant said. "We're almost at the capital."

Kazu shrugged at Rose and mouthed an apology. She smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes. Her attention was focused on the Doctor. She knew it was hard for him to be reminded that he was the last of his kind.

She was distracted from her observation of the Doctor when they came into view of a city. Rose squealed with delight. "It's beautiful!"

Kazu grinned. "It is, isn't it?"

Even though they were being force-marched through the city, Rose still took the time to marvel at the architecture. The buildings were beautiful enough on their own, but the people garbed in red and gold that walked among them added all the more loveliness. Many of the people stopped to gape at them. A few pointed at them and whispered among themselves.

"Why are they staring at us," Rose asked.

"You are pretty strange-looking," Itsu pointed out. "With your yellow hair and weird round eyes."

Rose lowered her voice and whispered to the Doctor. "Are we the only white people on this planet?"

"Am I white?" The Doctor raised his bound hands to his face and squinted. "Huh, I wonder when that happened."

"Wow." Rose looked away from the Doctor to see what had caught Jack's attention.

"Nice palace," Rose said with a nod of approval.

The Sergeant led them into the palace through the back. They made their way through several halls before coming to a stop outside of a grand door. There were several guards outside of the grand door, and all of them were staring at the Doctor, Rose and Jack with baffled expressions. The Sergeant relayed a brief summary of their encounter.

"We believe they may be assassins, or spies. They had some sort of weird Water Tribe device with them."

"Wait here," one of the guards commanded.

So, they waited. Rose looked around at the ornate decorations. She noticed a row of splendid tapestries and raised her bound hands to point at them. "Who are they?"

The Sergeant scowled. "Those tapestries depict the Firelord and his predecessors."

"Which one is the guy we're about to meet?"

The Sergeant looked angry enough to bite Rose's head off, so Kazu answered instead. "That one on the end, that's Firelord Zuko."

Rose leaned back to get a better view. She saw a young man who looked to be of Asian descent, with pale skin and dark hair. His face sported an angry red scar that surrounded his left eye. "What happened to his face," she whispered.

The Sergeant scowled and opened her mouth. She looked like she was about to start yelling, but she didn't get the chance. The guard returned and opened the grand door. "The Firelord will see you now."

They were pushed inside, which was pretty unnecessary. It's not like they would have been content to not meet this Firelord person after all that buildup. They looked at the throne. Rose burst out laughing. Jack was ready to strangle her. Not really, but maybe just a little, in a sexy way.

"Awwww! He's so cute!"

The Firelord, and he was definitely the Firelord, because he had the scar from the tapestry, scowled at them. Unlike the Sergeant's scowls, it was adorable. "Who are you, and why were you trying to sneak into the city?"

"He's adorable," Rose continued. She turned to the Doctor. "Can we keep him? Please?"

"You must be joking. I already let you have Jack!"

"As if you don't fancy Jack," Rose said with a condescending scoff.

"I-"

"Excuse me!" The Firelord was yelling. It was so adorable. "Who are you people? What are you doing in my country? What is the purpose of your strange weapon?"

"Weapon," the Doctor asked in an affronted tone. "We don't have any weapons."

"The Doctor doesn't believe in weapons," Jack said. "Even though the regularity with which they are pointed at him should be proof of their existence."

Rose chuckled. "Good one."

"Low-hanging fruit-" the Doctor began.

"Tastes delicious, I agree," Rose teased.

"Goddesses, you two are pretty when you bicker," Jack marveled.

The Firelord decided to yell louder, which was somehow even more cute. Rose was delighted. "Do you realize the severity of your situation? Do you know the penalty for espionage?"

"Death," Jack guessed.

"Well, no," he admitted. "I did away with the death penalty."

"That's very progressive of you," the Doctor said. "Well done."

"How old are you," Rose asked.

"I'm asking the questions," the cutest little Firelord said.

"Fifteen," Jack guessed.

"I'm seventeen!"

"Are you really," Rose asked. "But you're so short! You're shorter than I am."

The right side of the Firelord's face turned pink. "Tell me who you are," he said in a low growl that sounded to Rose like an angry puppy.

"Alright, alright, we don't need any teenage temper tantrums from monarchs with pyrokinesis," the Doctor said. "I'm the Doctor. This is Rose, and that is Jack."

The Firelord scowled again. "Those aren't very good fake names. What kind of name is the Doctor?" He put on a considering expression. "Although I did once meet a kid called the Duke," he admitted.

"We're not from around here," Rose explained. "We're tourists, from the…" She turned to Kazu. "What was the name of that place you mentioned earlier? You said a bunch of weird people live there."

"The Earth Kingdom?"

"That's it," Rose said. "We're from the Earth Kingdom."

The Firelord looked unimpressed. "I don't believe you."

"Don't be too proud of yourself," Jack said. "It wasn't exactly an incredible lie, was it?"

"Oi! You do better then!"

"Enough!" The Firelord shook his head. "We're getting nowhere. Guards, confine them to separate rooms and question them one at a time. Bring their strange device to the palace to be examined. Oh, and summon my scribe."

"Quick question," the Doctor said.

"Yes?" The Firelord glared at him.

"Is question a euphemism for torture."

"I banned torture," he admitted. "It isn't really very effective anyway. People who are being tortured will say anything to get the pain to stop. Also, it's wrong."

"Pragmatic and moral," the Doctor said. "You seem like an excellent leader, even if you are a teenager."

The Firelord rubbed his forehead like he was getting a headache. "Just… take them away," he ordered.

Rose whispered to the Doctor right before they were forced down different halls by the guards. "I want to keep him."

"No."

She pouted as the guards dragged her away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone is annoyed about the delay on Fight, I apologize. I'm considering changing the ending, so I can't finish the next chapter until I've decided to stick with the original path I planned for the story or go in a different direction. But the next chapter of Silence is almost finished! It was tough to write, but I think it turned out well(ish).
> 
> Please share your thoughts on this story below, good bad or indifferent. Thanks for reading!


	2. Swords, Boxes and Other Things From Space

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zuko calls in his expert on all things Water Tribe to take a look at the strange blue box.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One day I'm going to write a story that actually ends up having the number of chapters I originally planned for it (this is a lie).

Sokka pet the giant Eelhound and pointedly ignored Zuko's exasperated face. "Who's a good boy, Slippers? You are. Yes, you are."

"You couldn't have just come on a couple of Ostrichhorses," Zuko asked as Suki shoved their bags into his arms like he wasn't the Firelord and they weren't at his actual, literal palace. He swung the bags over his shoulders without complaint.

"Eelhounds are faster," Sokka pointed out. "And Slippers is the fastest Eelhound Master Piando has."

"I'm assuming you came up with that awful name," Zuko said. "This thing isn't going to fit in the stables, and it is NOT coming into the palace."

Sokka took a deep breath and puffed up his chest with indignation. "First of all-"

"Here we go," Suki muttered with a shake of her head. "You asked for it, Zuko."

"Slippers is OBJECTIVELY the most perfect name for an Eelhound!"

"Because…"

"Because they're slippery, obviously." Sokka grinned at Zuko, his face lit up brighter than the sun. He was so pleased with himself.

Zuko took great delight in crushing his joy. "But slippers aren't."

Sokka deflated a bit. "What?"

"You wear slippers so that you DON'T slip on the floor. They aren't slippery."

Sokka scowled. "I hate you sometimes."

Zuko turned to Suki. "How are you still with him?"

Suki glanced at Sokka and grinned. "He's cute, and he makes me laugh."

Sokka threw his arms around Suki and planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek. "I love you."

"Yuck," Zuko said.

Sokka pet Slippers. "You can head back to the manor, Slippers. Thanks for the lift. Good boy."

Slippers wiggled in appreciation and then took off running. Zuko rolled his eyes and led his friends into the palace. The first servant who saw them froze. His eyes widened with horror at the sight of his Firelord carrying luggage.

"My Lord, may I take those from you?"

"That's alright. I'm going to show my friends where their room is, so I might as well bring the bags myself. Thanks for asking."

The servant looked like he might be ill and gave Zuko a meek nod. "Very well, My Lord."

"Doesn't that ever get to your head," Sokka asked. "Everyone treating you like you're too good to carry bags? We don't want you growing an ego."

"Well earlier today some strange woman mocked me for being shorter than her in my own throne room, so-"

Sokka burst into laughter. "That's awesome! I can't wait to meet her. She is my new favorite person."

Zuko scowled. "She could be an assassin, Sokka."

"Okay, but if she isn't, new favorite person."

Zuko rolled his eyes. He showed Sokka and Suki the room they would be staying in. Sokka took a minute to mock how extravagant it was, and then Zuko led them to the strange blue box.

"Well," Zuko said, crossing his arms over his chest. "What is it?"

"Um… A box?"

"Yeah, I know it's a box, genius. What is it for? What does it do?"

"How should I know," Sokka asked.

"Because it's Water Tribe. You're Water Tribe. You should know what it is."

"How do you know it's Water Tribe," Suki asked.

"Well it has to be, right? I mean… It's blue?" Zuko lost his confidence halfway through speaking, but he forged ahead with admirable courage and commitment.

That didn't save him from Sokka's merciless mockery. "So anything that's blue has to come from the Water Tribe? You don't have any blue dye in the Fire Nation?"

"Well yeah, but… Shut up."

"Good comeback," Suki said.

"Well that's just great." Zuko threw his hands up in the air. "This thing is my only lead!"

"Have you tried opening it," Sokka asked.

"No," Zuko said in a voice dripping condescension. "That never occurred to me."

"It's okay, buddy. Thinking isn't for everyone. You're good at a lot of other things."

Zuko growled at Sokka.

Sokka walked up to the blue box and tried to pull the door open. Even though he and his soldiers had tried to open it in a variety of ways, Zuko felt a moment of fear that, for some reason, the box would open for Sokka. It was a ridiculous notion, but also just the sort of humiliating thing that would happen to Zuko. Sokka would never let him live it down. Zuko knew the box was just a box, but all the same, he felt an energy coming from it. Maybe the box would open just to embarrass Zuko.

It didn't. Zuko knew he should be disappointed, but he was relieved. Sokka ran his hands over the surface. "It's made of wood."

"We thought so too," Zuko said. "Until we tried to pry the doors open. Whatever this thing is may feel like wood, but it's a lot stronger."

Sokka pulled out his sword. "It's a good thing I brought the space sword. It can cut through anything."

"It had better. Jun charged me an arm and a leg to find that stupid thing for you."

"And I appreciate that buddy," Sokka said. "Not as much as I would have if she had also found my boomerang, but-"

"Just open the box," Zuko snapped.

"You're in a mood all of a sudden," Suki said. "What gives?"

"Sorry. That thing freaks me out. It…" Zuko shook his head. He couldn't tell his friends that a box felt like it was alive. They would just laugh at him. He'd been laughed at enough for one day.

"No worries," Sokka said. "Answers, coming up!" Sokka swung the sword with enough force to cut through an airship platform (which he had once done) and should have reduced a wooden box to splinters. The sword hit the box with a loud  **THUNK** .

Suki stepped closer to examine it. "Not even a nick." She ran her hand down the side of the box. "Impossible."

Zuko scoffed. "I want a refund."

Sokka looked from his sword to the box with an expression of betrayal. "Lemme try again."

"It's not going to work," Zuko said.

Sokka ignored him.  **THUNK.**

"What are you idiots doing?"

They all turned around. Mai was leaning on the doorway, looking bored and unimpressed. Zuko breathed a sigh of relief. He stepped forward and kissed her demurely on the cheek, because he wasn't gross like certain Water Tribesmen that shall remain nameless. "I'm so glad you're here. Something weird is going on."

"Yes, I know. I went to tell you that the situation with General Xhan was resolved, but your guards told me you invited your friends over to play with a new toy." She raised her eyebrow in playful disappointment. Most people would be intimidated by the expression, but Zuko knew her face too well. He knew when she was being serious.

"These three weird foreigners showed up with this strange weapon, and we can't figure out what it is," Zuko told her. "Can you do that scary thing you do with your eyes where people just start spilling their guts to you," he pleaded.

Mai considered. "Okay," she said. "Where are these foreigners?"

"I separated them so they couldn't discuss their cover story with each other."

"Hey," Sokka said, sounding delighted. "That was pretty smart Zuko."

"Why do you sound surprised," Zuko asked.

"Which one should we interrogate first," Mai asked.

"I think the one with the weird leather outer covering is their leader," Zuko said.

"Right then, let's go."

"We're coming too," Sokka said.

Mai rolled her eyes, but Zuko knew that was her secretly pleased eyeroll, so all was well.

They arrived outside a doorway being guarded by a pair of soldiers and entered to see the Doctor talking the ears off of another pair of soldiers. "It must be a recessive gene, I should think. I bet your species has a unique- Firelord Zuko! How nice for you to come and see me. I'm honored." The Doctor was sitting on the bed wearing a large grin.

"He hasn't stopped talking since we got here," one of the soldiers said, sounding as if he were on the verge of tears. "Nothing he says ever makes any SENSE."

"I'm glad you're here," the Doctor said. "I have so many questions for you."

"We're the ones asking the questions," Sokka said. "Like, for example, what is your freaky box made out of? My space sword can't even cut through it!"

That seemed to pique the Doctor's interest. "Space sword, you say?"

Sokka unsheathed his space sword, because he never needed much of an excuse to show it off. "I made it out of a meteor," Sokka explained.

"Fantastic," the Doctor exclaimed. He pulled out some sort of strange metal tube. They all took a step back, but he just waved it in the direction of Sokka's sword. It made some weird sounds and glowed.

"What is that thing," Suki asked.

"It's a sonic screwdriver," the Doctor said as he looked at the tube. "That is an impressive sword you have there. Not that I approve of swords as a general rule, but they are preferable to guns. The metallurgy though is fascinating."

The teenagers all glanced at one another.

"What's a sonic screwdriver," Zuko asked.

"And what's a gun," Suki asked.

"Oh, I LIKE this planet," the Doctor declared, sporting a wide goofy grin.

"Wait, hold on," Sokka said. "What do you mean by THIS planet. Are you saying that you're from a DIFFERENT planet?"

The Doctor pointed at Sokka. "You, I like you. Although, you did swing a sword at my TARDIS. Then again, she's nigh on indestructible. Just don't do it again."

"What's a TARDIS," Sokka asked. "Is that what the blue box is? What's it for?"

"We don't actually believe this guy is from a different planet, do we," Zuko asked.

"Of course not," Suki said. "That's ridiculous."

"I wish Toph was here," Zuko sighed.

"Who's Toph," the Doctor asked.

"She-" Sokka started to say.

"I don't mean to insult your incredible interrogation skills," Mai interrupted in a tone of voice that indicated she definitely did. "But you do realize that you keep giving this man valuable information about us while he does nothing but redirect our questions and weave tall tales, right? He hasn't given us a single straight answer since we walked in here."

Sokka cleared his throat and flushed red under his brown skin. "Yeah, I knew that," he lied.

Mai rolled her eyes. She looked at the Doctor, pinning him like her eyes were knives. He didn't seem perturbed. "Your name."

"The Doctor, and yours?"

She ignored his question. "Your real name."

"That is my real name."

"Where are you from?"

He considered her question. "Gallifrey." His voice was soft and sad as he spoke the word.

"Where is that?"

"Nowhere near anywhere you've ever been."

"Don't try to bait me. I know that trick. It's childish," Mai said.

"But you are a child," the Doctor protested. "You're a teenager. You're all teenagers. What happened to all of the adults in this government?"

"We can arrange for you to share a cell with one of them if you'd like. Tell us the truth."

"Mai," Zuko said, sounding as uneasy as he felt. He didn't like thinking about his father.

"I am telling you the truth," the Doctor said. "Why are you so inclined to mistrust?"

Mai turned to Zuko. "He's not going to tell us anything. Maybe we should speak to his companions instead. They might be more forthcoming with a little bit of… pressure."

"Your Firelord already admitted you don't torture people," the Doctor said.

Mai sighed. She gave Zuko a disappointed look.

"What? We don't!"

"But you could have neglected to tell him that," she said in the patient tone of one speaking to a toddler.

"But isn't threatening to torture someone also a form of torture, technically," Sokka said. "It's like torturing their mind instead of their body."

"Psychological torture is the term you're looking for," the Doctor said.

"Yeah, that's it! Thanks!"

"You're welcome," the Doctor said with a far too pleased with himself grin. "How about this? I'm quite fascinated by you lot and your interesting culture. You answer some of my questions, and I'll show you what's in the box."

Zuko gave the Doctor a suspicious look. "What sort of questions?"

"Just basic stuff, no state secrets," the Doctor assured him. "I want to learn about your history and your society. For example, you two," he nodded towards Sokka and Suki. "You aren't from this country, are you?"

"No," Sokka answered before Mai could stop him. "We're just here training with Master Piando. My dad said, now that the war is over, he wants me to spend time doing the things that I like to do. My sister and I sort of lost our whole childhoods to the war. He wants me to get some of that back, as much as I can."

"I see," the Doctor said. There was some unspoken emotion hiding under his voice. "Your father sounds like a good man."

"My dad is the best," Sokka said with hearty agreement. "Suki here is from Kyoshi Island. It's part of the Earth Kingdom. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe. We were cut off from our sister tribe up north for decades, but now we've reconnected. Is this the kind of stuff you're curious about?"

The Doctor nodded. "It is, absolutely." He looked at Sokka as if he were examining him. There was something in his eyes, a deep feeling that none of them could quite identify. "So this war, it's been a part of your life, of all your lives, since you were born?"

"Not anymore," Zuko said. "It's over now." Yet his voice betrayed him. Sorrow and exhaustion laced through it. For the leader of a country leaving behind a century of fighting, the war had just begun. "We ended it."

"You fought? All of you?"

"We had to," Suki whispered. "We had to protect the people that we love." She looked away, as if recalling some distant memory. Sokka put an arm around her waist.

"I think I understand now," the Doctor said. He looked at Zuko. "Your soldiers aren't just being paranoid. You ended a fight your countrymen were no doubt educated from birth to believe was righteous and just. Many of them see you as a traitor." Zuko met the Doctor's eyes and was filled with the awkward feeling that the Doctor somehow knew everything about him.

"There have been attempts on my life," Zuko admitted. "But we're making progress. Children are no longer being taught propaganda in schools. We're creating trade deals and cultural exchange programs between us and the other Nations. Things are getting better." Zuko knew he sounded like he was trying to convince himself.

"What an admirable thing you're doing," the Doctor said. "It's an awful weight to be put on anybody's shoulders, much less a child's."

Zuko bristled. "I am NOT a child."

"No," the Doctor agreed. "And that is the greatest tragedy of all. None of you are children, even though you all should be."

Mai cut him off, her voice hard and cold. "I believe we have upheld our end of the bargain. Now, you need to uphold yours."

The Doctor jumped to his feet. "Of course! I just need my friends. It takes all three of us to open the doors. Safety protocol, you see."

The four teenagers exchanged skeptical looks. Zuko nodded. "Fine." He turned to the guards. "Bring the other two prisoners to the blue box. We'll escort this one."

"My Lord, are you sure you wish to be left alone with this one," one of the guards asked.

"Somehow I think I'll manage to survive with just a Kyoshi Warrior, a Master Swordsman and a trained spy to protect me." He gave the guards an unimpressed look.

Mai kissed his cheek. "You didn't mention yourself," she pointed out.

He gave her an awkward shrug. The Doctor remembered the soldiers that had taken them captive calling Zuko a firebending Master. The Doctor was curious to see what that looked like. It could wait though.

The five of them made their way back to the TARDIS. They didn't need to wait long for Rose and Jack to be escorted in. Rose's face lit up when she saw them, and Zuko scowled at her.

Jack surveyed the teenagers. "More teenagers? What is with this place?"

"Jack, Rose," the Doctor said. "You remember Firelord Zuko? These are his friends, Mai, Suki and an interesting young man whose name did not get mentioned."

"I'm Sokka."

"Nice to meet you!" Rose stuck out her hand and Sokka shook it.

"They want to see what's inside the TARDIS," the Doctor said.

Jack raised a skeptical eyebrow. "And you're going to show them?"

"Well, why not?" The Doctor pulled out a key. He unlocked the door.

Zuko felt that energy again, that sense that the box was alive somehow. It wasn't that he thought there was something alive inside the box. He felt a lifeforce, an inner fire, coming from the box itself. The feeling was ridiculous, but he felt it all the same.

"Zuko," the Doctor said. "Would you like to go first?"

Mai threw her arm across Zuko's chest. "No way are you going inside what is so obviously an elaborate deathtrap. YOU go first," she ordered the Doctor.

"As you command." The Doctor disappeared inside the blue box. Zuko wanted to follow him. He wanted to see. It was like the box was calling to him, singing to him.

"C'mon, Zuko!" The woman, Rose, with the strange yellow hair, ran forward without warning and grabbed his hand. He could have stopped her from pulling him inside. He was a lot stronger than her. He didn't want to though. He wanted to go with her.

They entered the TARDIS. Zuko's mouth fell open. He turned in a circle. He rubbed his right eye, trying to clear his vision. "This is impossible," he whispered.

"I don't like that word," the Doctor said. "It's so rarely apt."

Sokka, Suki and Mai stumbled inside, the three of them on the receiving end of a good shove from Jack. He turned around and slammed the doors shut, locking them. No guards would be following.

"Welcome to the TARDIS!" The Doctor threw out his arms, gesturing to their surroundings.

"It's-!" Sokka ran to the other end of the control room and touched the wall. "It's not an optical illusion." He bit his lip. "Maybe it's some sort of weird design where the walls are curved at some sort of special angle, but that doesn't make sense…" He ran his hands through his hair.

Jack pointed at Sokka. "He's my favorite."

Zuko reached out and touched one of the support columns. "She's alive," he whispered.

Rose pointed to Zuko. "He's MY favorite."

"Now, now kids, let's not pick favorites. That isn't very nice," the Doctor said. He clapped his hands and then rubbed them together. "Now-"

A knife flew through the air, going through the sleeve of the Doctor's jacket and lodging into one of the support columns. It didn't even graze his skin, but it pinned him into place. Mai held identical knives in each of her hands, ready to throw again. Suki had pulled out two golden metal fans. "Let us out," Mai said in a cold hard voice.

"Okay, actually," Rose said. "She might be my favorite. Sorry, Zuko."

"That's okay," Zuko said. "She's my favorite too." He grinned at Mai.

The Doctor chuckled, but he didn't sound amused. "You think I brought you in here to hurt you. Of course you do. You poor kids, the world has been so cruel to you for so long. Of course you assume that our intentions are ill. How many times has that assumption kept you alive?"

"Whatever game you're playing, it ends now," Suki said. "It was a clever trick, pretending not to know anything about the state of the world and getting us curious about who you are. You made a mistake though. You didn't isolate your target. We're not going to let you hurt Zuko."

"We would never!" Rose looked as outraged as she no doubt felt, channeling all of her mother's capacity for indignation, which was extensive. "He's too cute to hurt, even if we were the sort of people you think we are."

"Which we aren't," Jack added.

The Doctor frowned at Mai and Suki. He wore his heartache on his face. "I don't want to hurt him. I don't want to hurt any of you. I just want to show you something beautiful. Children should get to see the world as a magical place, not an unending battlefield."

"Guys," Sokka said. "I think he's telling the truth."

Mai scowled. "It's a trick. This was all a trick."

"It's not," the Doctor promised. He reached up to pull the knife out of his sleeve, but she prepared to throw another, so he dropped his hand. He didn't want more holes in his favorite jacket. "If you could go anywhere, see anything, past, present or future, where would you go?"

"What," Zuko asked, thrown. The question was so random and unrelated to anything else that was happening to them.

"Just pick a time and place, anytime, anyplace, that you wish you could see," the Doctor said. "You won't regret it."

"What kind of nonsense is-" Mai started to say.

"Kyoshi Island, three hundred years ago," Suki said. "I'd want to meet Avatar Kyoshi."

"Then you will," the Doctor said. He yanked the knife out of his sleeve and held it out for Mai to take. "Trust me."

"I don't trust anyone," Mai said.

"You trust him." The Doctor nodded at Zuko.

"He earned it."

"Then all I'm asking for is a chance to earn your trust," the Doctor said.

Mai snatched her knife away. "You're crazy. You're all crazy." She sighed. "I'm crazy. Fine."

The Doctor beamed at her. "You won't regret this. Next stop, Kyoshi Island."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeaaaaaaaah. You read that right. Two of my favorite bisexuals are about to meet up. What's going to happen? Who can say. Will Jack fall in love? Almost certainly.
> 
> You didn't really think I was going to drop a time machine in the ATLA world and keep the plot in linear time, did you?
> 
> Share your thoughts below if you would like. :D


	3. Nerds Vs. Pirates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I think the title really says it all, no?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got up super early to finish editing and post this chapter before work and ran out of time. So then I skipped lunch for the same reason and still ran out of time. Now I'm off work and can finally post the chapter. All this to say, never let it be said that I don't suffer for my art.

The box was moving. That made no sense, because it didn't have any wheels, but all the same. It was moving. As the box shook, Zuko grabbed onto one of the support columns, and Mai grabbed onto Zuko, so not a terrible turn of events all in all.

The Doctor turned away from his control panel to grin at his two companions and the four teenagers they had sorta but not really kidnapped. "Here we are, Kyoshi Island."

Mai rolled her eyes. "Impossible."

"Terrible word. I'm going to go back and have Webster strike it from the dictionary. Not that doing so would make a difference on this planet."

"Kyoshi Island is off the southern coast of the Earth Kingdom. We were only moving for a few seconds. There's no way we're on Kyoshi Island," Suki said.

"If you're so sure, why don't you go outside and look," the Doctor suggested.

It was a pointless suggestion, because Rose was already throwing the doors open. "It's gorgeous," Rose squealed as she ran outside.

They all looked out the doors. "Impossible," Suki whispered in a tone of awe.

"I'm putting a moratorium on that word," the Doctor insisted.

The six of them followed Rose outside. Some things were different. There were short trees that would grow taller over the next three hundred years. There were tall trees that would be cut down at some point in the next three hundred years. None of that mattered. Kyoshi Island was Suki's home, and she knew it when she saw it.

"We're on Kyoshi Island," Suki said in a stunned voice. "We're actually on Kyoshi Island." Suki started laughing. Her face lit up in a smile bright enough to light a room. She grabbed Sokka by the shoulders and kissed him full on the lips. "We're on Kyoshi Island!"

Sokka laughed with Suki. He picked her up and spun her around, infected with her joy. "Oh! Is that giant statue up yet?"

Suki shook her head. She was still lounging in his arms. It was comfortable there. "It won't be built until after her death." She hopped to the ground. "Let's go look at the village!"

The Doctor stepped in front of them. "Before you go anywhere, we have to go over the ground rules of time travel."

"Rule one," Rose said. "Have fun and don't stress out about it too much."

The Doctor stepped to the side. "Alright, now you're ready."

"Woo hoo!" Suki grabbed Sokka's hand and was off like a shot. The path was familiar to her. In minutes she was outside of her dojo. Suki froze and squeezed Sokka's hand. "I can't believe it."

"It looks different," Sokka said.

"You run really fast," Rose said, coming up behind them. She sounded slightly out of breath. "See Doctor, they're perfect." She gave him an imploring look that he ignored.

"Can we go inside," Suki asked. "Can we talk to people? Can we touch things?"

"Yes," the Doctor said. "No one will know who you are though, and you can't tell them."

Suki nodded. "I could just go in and ask for a lesson. Oh, but we don't train boys. Mai and Rose would be the only people who can come with me."

"We'll wait out here," Sokka assured her. "I have a lot of questions to ask the Doctor. Wan Shi Tong, eat your heart out. This guy is an alien! He knows how to travel in time! I'm going to learn the secrets of the universe and there's nothing that stupid owl can do about it."

"I have so many questions about what you just said," Jack said.

"You guys have fun," Zuko said. "I'll babysit the nerds."

"I'm sorry," Suki said. "Did you just imply that you aren't a nerd, he who can quote the entirety of Love Amongst the Dragons by heart?" She put her hands on her hips.

"Shh! That play won't be written for another eighty-six years!"

"You know the exact year it was written," Mai said with a fond indulgent smile.

"Neeeeeerd," Rose said.

The right side of Zuko's face turned pink. "I'll see you guys when you get back," he huffed.

Mai stepped forward and kissed him on his scarred cheek before turning around and following Suki and Rose into the dojo. "Do they really just teach any woman who asks," Rose asked. "There's no fee?"

Suki shook her head. "Avatar Kyoshi believed that all women should be able to defend themselves if the need arises. Whether you're training to become a Kyoshi Warrior, or just to protect yourself, all women are welcome here."

They stepped inside. The dojo was familiar, and yet so different. A woman with a uniform similar, but with slight differences, to Suki's own was leading a group through some exercises. Another woman in a Kyoshi Warrior uniform walked over to them with a grin. "Are you three here for lessons?"

"Yes," Suki said.

"Welcome," the woman said with deep feeling. Suki heard herself in the woman's voice and had to struggle to maintain her composure. She felt like grinning like an idiot or bursting into tears. This was one of the women that had laid the groundwork for her.

Suki bowed. "We are honored to be here."

The woman returned the bow and smiled at her. "We have a beginner class starting soon. Would you like to hear about our organization while you wait?"

"We would love to," Rose said. "I have a question. Why don't you teach boys?"

The woman smiled and gestured for the trio to follow her into the back. Suki recognized the museum, even without the artifacts that had belonged to Avatar Kyoshi. Those items would still be in her possession, Suki realized. "Avatar Kyoshi founded the Kyoshi Warriors to train women to defend themselves," the woman explained.

The woman picked up a golden fan. "Women are often expected to be ornamental in Earth Kingdom society. There are exceptions, such as Avatar Kyoshi, of course. Yet the truth remains that for many women we are expected to live the whole of our lives at the mercy of the whims of our fathers or husbands."

Suki turned to Mai and Rose. "The idea is that women don't need to know how to defend themselves, because no honorable man would ever strike a woman."

Mai scoffed. "We all know how relying on a man's honor to stay his hand works out," she said in a dark and angry tone.

"Exactly," Suki said. "A woman's ignorance of how to fight is supposed to protect her, because her inability to defend herself makes it dishonorable to attack her. In reality, this worldview just leaves women vulnerable to violence."

"Yes," the woman said, opening the fan to reveal its sharp edge. "Avatar Kyoshi taught the first of us to defend ourselves against our husbands, our fathers or muggers. She taught us to use weapons that it would not be strange to see a woman carrying, such as decorative fans, or to conceal our weapons."

"How much damage can a fan do," Rose asked, sounding skeptical.

Mai gave Rose a small smile. She rolled up a sleeve and revealed a long scar that ran up her arm. She'd gotten the injury when she'd helped Azula capture the Kyoshi Warriors outside of Ba Sing Se. When Azula had seen the wound, she had shaken her head in disappointment. Azula expected better from those under her command. The fact that Mai almost lost an arm didn't concern her.

The woman gasped. "Did a Kyoshi Warrior do that?! Using our methods for offense goes against everything we believe in!"

Mai remembered where they were and that she couldn't tell the truth. "No, of course not," Mai assured the woman. "I tried to use a fan without proper training and injured myself. I learned my lesson. That's why I'd like to receive instruction."

The woman looked at the angle of the scar on Mai's arm. She had to know Mai was lying, but it was the best lie Mai had been able to think of on short notice. "Excuse me, I'll be right back." The woman left the museum.

"Did that happen in the war," Rose asked.

Mai pulled down her sleeve and nodded. "I fought for Princess Azula."

"Oh! I know that name. One of the soldiers that took us prisoner mentioned it. He said she was in a mental hospital."

Mai flinched and looked away. "Yes, she is," she whispered.

"I think she should be locked up in a real prison," Suki muttered. "She was sane enough when she conquered Ba Sing Se and when she suggested burning down the Earth Kingdom." Suki glanced at Mai and cringed. "Oh, but… No offense. You changed; you picked the right side."

"Wait," Rose said. "You fought on opposite sides of the war? I thought you were all friends."

"We are," Suki said. "Now." She offered Mai an awkward, but sincere, smile. "I'd be a skeleton at the bottom of the Boiling Lake if it weren't for Mai."

"Actually, the corrosive chemicals in the water would have dissolved your skeleton," Mai said in a mild tone.

"Fun," said Rose.

That was when the shouting started, because, as Sokka would say, the universe couldn't stand to see them happy. Suki, Mai and Rose ran out into the main room of the dojo. "Pirates," a man was yelling. "Everyone run! They're destroying the village!"

Suki and Mai exchanged a look. Both of them grabbed swords off of the wall. They ran out of the dojo, Rose close behind. They rushed back to the clearing where they had left the boys.

Sokka was yelling at Jack. "Numbers can't be imaginary! That doesn't make sense!" Sokka pulled at his hair while he yelled. Jack grinned at Sokka.

Zuko was hanging on the Doctor's every word while the alien told him about the Globe Theatre. "The acoustics are incredible. You'd love it."

When the women entered the clearing, armed and looking concerned, their conversations came to an abrupt end. They all got to their feet. "What happened," Sokka asked.

"Pirates are attacking the village," Suki said. "Come on!" She took off running without waiting for a response.

The seven of them ran into the village square to see a man with a similar complexion to Sokka's and a face covered in scratches. He was holding onto a porch support beam to lean to the side and had his other hand next to his mouth to form a makeshift megaphone. "Oh Avatar Kyooooooooooshi! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

He swung his arm through the air. A well pump popped out of the ground like a cork and water rushed to him. He swung his arm again. The water hardened into blades of ice that sliced through the wall of a nearby building.

"The Avatar isn't here," a man shouted. "The Firelord requested her help with Spirit troubles! She left a week ago!"

"Really," the scratched pirate asked. "Are you sure?"

"Yes! She's gone! Tell us what you want, and we'll give it to you."

The pirate turned to another man, pale as marble with pitch black hair. His hair was short with jagged edges, as if it had been cut with a knife. "Did you hear that Hozi? He said Avatar Kyoshi isn't here."

Another man, with blue Airbender tattoos that had been slashed through with black ink, fell to the earth from the sky. He snapped shut a glider. "I didn't see her," he said. "At seven feet tall, you'd think she'd stand out."

The earth opened up to spit out a forth, older, man with a sour expression. "I didn't see her, boss."

"How can you see anything down there Touli," the Airbender asked.

"Shut up," Touli snapped.

"That is a disappointment," the waterbending pirate said. "I went through all the trouble to gather disgraced benders of every nationality to crush the Avatar, and she isn't even here!"

"I guess we'll just have to leave," the Airbender said with a laugh.

"I suppose so," the Waterbender said. "Although…" He spun around the pole. "A thought occurs to me."

"Oh, oh, share!" The Airbender grinned.

"Kyoshi humiliated me. Wouldn't destroying her home while she isn't here to protect it be the perfect way to embarrass her in return?"

"I think it would," said Hozi, the shorn Firebender, in a quiet menacing voice.

Mai handed the sword she'd grabbed to Zuko and pulled out her knives. Sokka drew his sword. Suki stepped forward. Jack put a hand on her shoulder. "You're not actually going to fight those guys, are you?"

Suki shook him off. "Of course I am."

"That one guy can fly," Rose hissed.

"Technically, he's gliding, not flying," Zuko said.

"Oh, well that's fine then," Rose said sarcastically.

"Hey!" Suki approached the group, brandishing her borrowed katana. "You are not welcome here. Leave now, and we won't hurt you."

The Airbender laughed. "It's one of Kyoshi's pets! C'mon then, little girl, dance for us."

"Yeah," the Waterbender said. "Dance." He sent a wave of ice daggers at her.

Suki ducked and rolled. The other three teenagers surged forward. Zuko jumped onto a porch roof to try and get the high ground on the Airbender. Mai threw a handful of knives at the Earthbender in an attempt to pin him in place. Sokka rushed at the Firebender.

"They really are soldiers," Rose whispered in realization. Her heart broke for them.

"Well I'm not letting them fight by themselves," Jack said. He pulled out a blaster.

"Put that away," the Doctor ordered with a scowl. "You'll disrupt their whole timeline!"

"I have to do something! They're just kids!"

"We should go get the rest of those Kyoshi Warriors," Rose said. "Maybe they can help!"

"They ran off. They aren't going to help," Jack said.

The fight wasn't going well. The Earthbender kept diving into the ground and then popping back out. The Airbender was up in the air, striking out from above where no one could reach him. The Firebender had a wall of flame around him, from behind which he punched sporadic balls of fire. The Waterbender was just dancing, surrounded by blades of ice.

Zuko somehow scrambled up onto a roof and lept at the Airbender, like an insane person. Zuko landed on his back, and they both went crashing to the ground. Jack ran forward as the two landed hard on the ground. As they both struggled to stand Jack hauled up the Airbender and punched him in the face with a closed fist, which was stupid but felt good.

"You're crazy, kid, do you know that," Jack asked as he got the slippery disgraced monk into a headlock.

"I'm not a-"

The Airbender kicked out a blast of air that sent himself and Jack flying back. As they landed in a heap the Airbender took in a deep breath. He exhaled at Zuko, sending a wave of air at him. Zuko landed in a heap of wooden debris.

Rose gasped and ran towards him. The Doctor followed right behind her. Rose offered Zuko a hand and pulled him into a sitting position. "I'm fine," Zuko insisted, trying to brush her off.

The Doctor shook his head. "You are not fine." The Doctor turned around and headed towards the fray.

"Hey, get back here. They'll kill you!"

The Doctor ignored Zuko. "Oi! Man in charge! I'd like to have words with you, if you don't mind."

The Waterbender glanced at him, allowing Suki to get close and grab his wrist, twisting and pulling it behind his back. The Airbender summoned a whirlwind around the pair, lifting them both up and then pulling them apart. He dropped Suki, while he lowered his friend to the ground with care. The Waterbender stationed a sharp icicle over her.

"If you really want revenge on Avatar Kyoshi you'll get away from her and listen to me!"

The Waterbender hesitated. He glanced at the Doctor, taking in his strange appearance and wardrobe. "Who are you then?"

"Leave these kids alone, and I'll tell you. It's worth your while. I can guarantee it."

"You must think I'm stupid," the Waterbender said.

"I wouldn't say that. I might think it, sure, but I wouldn't say it." The Doctor smiled, showing all of his teeth. "Hurting these kids won't win you anything. Kyoshi doesn't care about them."

"Kyoshi loves this island," the Waterbender insisted. "She split off from the mainland just to protect it. When she gets home to see her precious village in ashes and her pets as cold corpses, her heart will break."

"If she really cared," the Doctor said. "She would be here. She isn't though, is she?"

"How dare you talk about Avatar Kyoshi that way?!" Suki got to her feet. She glared at the Doctor, trembling with rage. "Avatar Kyoshi has a duty to the entire world, not just Kyoshi Island!"

"Kyoshi Island? She renamed it after herself? Female vanity at its finest," the Waterbender mocked.

Suki's complexion was turning red. She continued, acting as if she hadn't slipped up and revealed knowledge of the future. "Avatar Kyoshi knew- knows that you can't be everywhere and protect everyone at the same time. She gave us the tools to protect ourselves, so that we would always be safe, even when she can't be here!"

"Well, she failed." The Waterbender got into a bending stance. Suki rushed him with the katana.

"No! Stop! Listen to me," the Doctor yelled.

A wave of water and a blast of air hit Suki at the same time, slamming her into a building and knocking the breath out of her. The Waterbender and the Airbender shared a laugh as they both stalked towards her.

"Suki!" Sokka turned away from the Firebender he'd been fighting to race towards her. Sokka's face was covered in soot.

The Firebender grinned. He prepared to strike Sokka in the back. A blast flew through the air, headed straight for the shorn Firebender's chest. He executed a block at the last moment, but was still sent flying backwards.

Jack chuckled as he lowered his blaster. "Check me out, Rose. I'm a Firebender."

Sokka swung his sword at the Waterbender and was blocked by a wall of ice. Suki danced around the Airbender. The Firebender saw Mai and the Earthbender still dodging each other and grinned. He raised his hands in preparation for a move that Zuko knew all too well.

Zuko ran. He planted himself in front of Mai and reached out to grab the lightning that was about to shoot towards her. He knew what it would mean, but he didn't care. He was willing to make the sacrifice.

He didn't need to. The ground rose up around the Firebender, and he sunk into it. His flames were snuffed under layers of dirt. His nose was the sole part of his body that remained above the surface.

A blast of flame from some other source raced towards the Airbender as he prepared to strike against Suki. He attempted to deflect, but he only succeeded in flaring the flames. He dropped to the ground and covered his head. A wall of flame surrounded him.

A whirlwind lifted the Waterbender into the sky, high above the buildings, and kept him there. He flailed about, helpless and terrified. He tried to reach out for his element, but he was too far away from any source of water. His life was at the mercy of the breeze.

The Earthbender threw his hands into the air. "Alright," he spat. "I surrender. I know we're beaten." He got to his knees and put his hands behind his head.

A seven foot tall woman with her face painted white stepped into view. "Yes, you are."

Suki dropped to her knees and bowed low, forehead touching the dirt. "Avatar Kyoshi," she murmured in awe.

Zuko stayed standing, but he gave Avatar Kyoshi his deepest bow. Mai and Sokka followed suit. Rose walked up to the Doctor and whispered in his ear. "Should we bow?"

The Doctor looked at the men who had been moments away from killing their delightful new friends. He looked at the calm and still woman keeping them contained with three simultaneous displays of elemental superiority. "I don't think it would hurt."

The Doctor, Rose and Jack all copied Zuko's bow, poorly.

"Now," Avatar Kyoshi said, her voice betraying no emotion. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Well," Jack piped up, because thinking before speaking had never really been his thing. "I just want to say that those guys started it." He pointed at the pirates. "Also, can I add that what you're doing right now is very impressive and I think I'm falling a little bit in love with you?"

Zuko turned and glared at Jack. "Shut up," he whispered. "You can't talk to the Avatar like that."

"Okay, a lot in love with you. The little bit was just me trying to sound cool and aloof."

The Doctor groaned and shook his head. Things could never just go the way he planned them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kyoshi! Sort of. A bit of her at the end at least. Don't worry, the next chapter is all hers. This chapter was the hardest to write so far and the one I am least confident in, so I would really appreciate your thoughts! Thanks for reading!


	4. When the Avatar Wants Your Opinion, She Will Ask For It (She Won't)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Avatar Kyoshi handles the situation. She is not taking constructive criticism at this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember how this started out as cute and funny? It was supposed to stay that way. I'm incapable of not writing angst, I suppose. That and keeping chapter numbers down. This was literally supposed to be two chapters initially. Oh well. Here's your daily recommended dose of Avatar Kyoshi.

Kyoshi examined the damage done to her beloved home. As she did, she took in the seven strangers before her. She summoned some water and approached Suki. "Rise, child," Kyoshi requested.

Suki got to her feet. "Thank you, Avatar Kyoshi."

"You're injured. Will you allow me to heal you?"

"I- Thank you, Avatar Kyoshi." Suki bowed her head.

Avatar Kyoshi lowered healing hands over a number of bleeding scrapes and rising bruises. Suki felt the relief at once.

"Wow! That's brilliant! Doctor, will you take a look at that," Rose exclaimed. "Is that an Avatar thing," she asked Zuko.

"It's a Waterbender thing," Zuko explained. "Waterbenders can heal people by redirecting the flow of energy in their bodies." He rubbed a spot on his chest. "The great Masters of the Water Tribes perfected the art over generations."

"Whereas Katara perfected it over a few weeks," Sokka added. He wiped soot off of his face. His skin had darkened as if he'd just spent days under the summer sun with his face tilted up at the sky.

Kyoshi finished healing Suki and then approached the Earthbender still kneeling on the ground. "I recognize your uniform. Has no one informed you that the man you serve is dead?"

The Earthbender released a bitter laugh. "I was there that day you treacherous murderess. I'm well aware."

"If you were there," Kyoshi said in a calm voice. "Then you swore the same oath all the other soldiers who surrendered did. You swore upon the consequence of death."

The Earthbender spat on the ground. "A vow made to an upjumped peasant wench is no true oath. If the world is to be run by women and the weak-willed men who concede to them, then I would rather not live in it."

"You seem like a fun guy," Jack said.

Kyoshi shook her head. "Many of your brethren have gone on to live full and productive lives after their surrenders. Look at yourself, still fighting a war long over."

"As long as there are still men in the world with strength and courage, our fight will never be over!" The Earthbender laughed. "Go on then woman, give me another oath to swear. We both know that you're too soft to kill me. You have a woman's weak stomach."

"You have already broken one oath," Kyoshi said. She did not raise her voice or alter its cadence. "You cannot be trusted to keep another. You are a man without honor and a disturber of the peace. You attacked civilians and children."

The Earthbender snorted. "Savages, the lot of them. Watered down blood and ash babies. Everyone knows they grow up faster than true children of Earth and then die young. You might as well accuse me of stepping on a butterhopper."

"What is your name," Kyoshi asked.

He scoffed.

"The Airbender called him Touli," Mai whispered. Her tone conveyed an understanding of how serious the question she answered was.

Kyoshi held out her hand to Mai, and Mai knew what she was asking for at once. Mai handed her the katana. "Touli, of the Earth Kingdom, I, Avatar Kyoshi, sentence you to d-"

"Woah, woah, woah," the Doctor cut her off. Everyone turned to look at him with expressions of surprise and annoyance. "You're just going to kill him? He doesn't even get a trial? Violence isn't the answer here."

"You can't interrupt the Avatar while she's dispensing justice," Suki said in a scandalized tone. She turned to Kyoshi. "I'm so sorry, Avatar Kyoshi. He's a foreigner, a very… foreign foreigner. He doesn't know any better."

"I know a little bit about a few things I dare say," the Doctor said in an affronted tone. "If you kill him, then how are you any better than he is?"

"I make no claim to superiority," Kyoshi said. "As the Avatar, it is my duty to maintain peace and balance. This man poses a danger to both. I take no pleasure in this charge of my office, but I cannot decline it."

"You act like you don't have any agency, as if someone else were making the choice. It's your hands that will be swinging that blade. His death will be on your conscience."

"That is a burden I must and will bear. As the Avatar, I am obligated to put my duty to the world above my own spiritual needs. This is something I accepted long ago. Now, please step aside. It would be cruel to drag this out any longer."

"You-" Jack interrupted the Doctor by grabbing his elbow and yanking him to the side. "Oi! Hands off," the Doctor hissed.

"Look, I know non-interference is the exact opposite of your schtick, but this is a part of their culture. We shouldn't intervene. He's not exactly worth it, is he?"

The Doctor yanked his arm out of Jack's grasp. "I don't think it's for us to decide who is and isn't worth giving a second chance." The Doctor turned to face Kyoshi and the Earthbender again.

"I, Avatar Kyoshi, sentence you to death." The Earthbender slammed his hand into the Earth. A spike of rock started to emerge, but Kyoshi returned it to its natural state with a twitch of her foot. She swung the katana and separated the criminal's head from his neck with a single, sure, clean blow. It all happened in seconds.

The Doctor looked away, his expression twisted in disgust. Rose tried to take his hand and offer him some comfort, but he snatched it away. The Doctor stared at the arterial spray on Kyoshi's dress. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

Kyoshi pulled some water out of the air and used it to clean the katana's blade. The metal gleamed as if new. The body lay on the ground, broken. It struck the Doctor as perverse that a weapon could kill and then be cleaned. He thought a weapon, once used, should be stained with blood ever after.

Kyoshi approached the place where a Firebender's nose stuck out of the ground. She lifted him out of his imprisonment. He collapsed to his hands and knees, coughing. He took several deep breaths.

"Would I be correct to assume that you were part of the failed rebellion," Kyoshi asked.

The Firebender pulled himself to his feet. He growled at Kyoshi. "I served the rightful Firelord," he snapped. "Not that shameless pretender."

Everyone, except for Kyoshi, glanced at Zuko. He started counting something on his fingers. "Oh, of course. Firelord Zura, the first female Firelord."

"She is not the Firelord," the man screamed. "She stole the throne from her brother!"

Zuko shook his head. "Traditionally, the throne always went to the Firelord's oldest son. The legitimacy of our- of the Royal Family's rule is based on the belief that w- they are the favored sons of the Sun Spirit, as evidenced by the superior firebending the Royal Family tends to be blessed with." Zuko looked at the ground. All of a sudden, he sounded exhausted.

"Firelord Zura was her father's eldest child," Kyoshi said. "She is also a prodigious Firebender. Her younger brother, however, is a nonbender. When faced with a choice between having a woman as an heir, or a nonbender, the previous Firelord chose in favor of his daughter." Kyoshi spoke in an academic tone, giving no indication of how she felt about the matter.

"There was a civil war," Zuko said. "The Firelord had made his choice clear, but many people balked at being ruled by a woman. Even the Fire Sages themselves were split on the matter. There were assassinations. There was rioting in the streets."

"So Avatar Kyoshi interceded to restore peace and order," Suki said. "I remember this story now. I didn't know that first part about the bending and gender. When I heard the story, I was just told that the Firelord's younger brother tried to steal her throne."

"Well, you're right, that is what happened," Zuko agreed. "Regardless of what her brother might have believed, Firelord Zura was the rightful heir. She was chosen by her predecessor to rule after him. She was the eldest and the superior Firebender."

"Is firebending really that important for ruling the country though," Sokka asked in a skeptical tone. "The Earth King isn't a bender. Neither is my da- I mean…" Sokka trailed off as he tried to think of a way to cover up what he had just said.

"The Firelord MUST be a Firebender," Mai said. "It's been the law for centur-" Mai cleared her throat. She remembered that in the time she was in, the law was new, not ancient. "No nonbender may hold the throne."

"Yeah…" Zuko rubbed his arm. "That's true. Firelord Zura made what was once just a tradition into an indisputable law. The Fire Sages cannot crown any claimant to the throne without first witnessing proof of their firebending prowess."

"That's silly," Sokka scoffed.

"That's our culture," Mai snapped.

"Firelord Zura was merciful where she could be," Kyoshi said to the Firebender. "To have been stripped of your honor, you must have committed a heinous crime."

"I dealt with traitors the way that they earned," he snapped. "The crime was theirs, not mine. Anyone who would support the traitor princess deserved to choke on smoke." He locked eyes with Kyoshi. "Well, woman, will you kill me now?"

Kyoshi shook her head. "You are still the Firelord's subject, even if you are banished. I will take you back to the Fire Nation so that she may dispense the justice of her choosing."

The Firebender scowled. "I'm entitled to an honorable death, even if I have been shorn. I'm still Fire. I have that right."

Zuko and Mai locked eyes with one another. "That's true," Mai said with a sigh. "All Children of Fire are entitled to honor in death, even if they lost it in life."

"Yeah," Zuko muttered. "When all avenues to regain honor in life have been exhausted, there is a final way to redeem yourself to your ancestors and the Spirits."

The Doctor exploded. "Listen to yourselves! Can't you hear how you sound?! There are solutions to your problems that don't involve bloodshed!"

They ignored him. Mai gestured to herself and Zuko. "We're Fire. We can be your witnesses."

The Firebender examined them. He glanced from Mai to Zuko. "You look like her, the traitor princess. You have her eyes."

Zuko smiled. "Thank you."

He scowled. "That wasn't a compliment."

"It is to me."

Kyoshi held the katana out to the Firebender. "I will not deny you a sacrament of your beliefs. If this is what you would choose, I will bear witness as well."

"Wait," Rose whispered to the Doctor and Jack. "Why is she giving the sword to him? I'm confused."

"He's going to kill himself," Jack explained. "That's how he can restore his honor."

"Grim," Rose muttered.

"I hate this planet." The Doctor crossed his arms and seethed.

The man lined the blade up with his stomach. He took a deep breath as if steeling himself. He glanced at Zuko and smirked. He exhaled a stream of fire.

Zuko threw his arms up in front of his face. Everything happened too fast. There was fire, huge, furious and blistering. It covered Zuko's arms.

Kyoshi stomped her foot and buried the Firebender again. She didn't leave his nose uncovered like she had before. At the same time, Suki tackled Zuko to the ground and smothered the flames with dirt. Zuko panted and gasped with pain.

Avatar Kyoshi knelt in front of him. "Let me see," she ordered. Zuko didn't need to be told twice.

Seeing such deep and damaging injuries vanish was a lot more impressive than watching a few bruises disappear. Rose walked closer and gaped at the display. She looked at Zuko's face, twisted in pain, and felt her fascination fade. Concern took its place. "Are you alright, Zuko?"

His friends had very different reactions. "What was that?!" Sokka looked furious. "Why didn't you defend yourself?!"

"Hey!" Rose scowled. "That guy could breathe fire! What was he supposed to do?!"

"Oh, I dunno. Bend it away!"

"I can't," Zuko snapped.

"What do you mean, you can't," Suki asked in a gentler, but still frustrated, tone. Rose noticed a few small burns on her palms from where she had beat out the flames on Zuko.

"I can't firebend anymore," Zuko whispered.

There was a moment of complete silence. The roars of the wind trapping the Waterbender and the fire trapping the Airbender were all that could be heard. Kyoshi finished her work on Zuko's burns and then put her hand on his chest. "You are very ill, young man. Are you aware of this?"

Zuko looked into her eyes and flinched. "Yes, I know," he admitted. "It's my heart."

"Your heart," Mai whispered.

"It was Azula's lightning. Katara healed my wound, and I was recovering. At first I was more or less fine." No one needed to bother to point out that more or less fine with Zuko was always less than fine.

"Then I began to get worse. I thought it was stress in the beginning, but… I started finding it harder to breathe. Firebending got more and more difficult. The last time I tried to summon a flame I passed out."

Mai stared at him. "How could you keep this from me?" Her voice was quiet, but it trembled with rage and pain.

"I didn't want to worry you," he mumbled.

"Great job." Her tone was sharp enough to cut through glass.

"Why didn't you tell Katara," Sokka asked. "She would have healed you. She would have jumped on Appa and flown straight to the Fire Nation!"

"Yeah, that's why I couldn't tell her."

"What?! Are you crazy?! Have you actually gone insane?! Listen to yourself!"

"If I told Katara, then she would have dropped everything to come and help me. That's not fair to Katara, calling her back every few months to fix me again. Not to mention, she would feel guilty about how it happened in the first place." Zuko took a deep breath and then several more. "As long as no one finds out, it will be fine. I'll be f-f-" Zuko took several more deep breaths.

"Stop talking," Avatar Kyoshi ordered.

Zuko complied. It was unclear whether he was deferring to the Avatar or simply couldn't disobey. He gasped for air.

"Look into my eyes, little flame," Kyoshi whispered. "Draw strength from your inner fire. Take a slow deep breath. Fill your lungs. Then let it out, slow, slow, slow," she instructed.

Zuko listened to her. His breathing evened out. Kyoshi breathed with him until he'd had several regular breaths. She nodded, satisfied.

Kyoshi got to her feet. She offered Zuko a hand. He took it, and she helped him to his feet with gentle movements. She turned to face the others. "Get him to the village healer," she ordered. 

"I have business here to finish," Kyoshi said, gesturing at the other two criminals. "When I am done, I will have questions for all of you. You will remain at the healer's until I arrive," she ordered. There was no threat to accompany the order. There didn't need to be.

Mai approached Zuko and pulled one of his arms over her shoulders. She put her arm around his waist. "I'm f-"

"Stop talking," Kyoshi and Mai ordered at the same time.

Sokka got Zuko's other side. "I know the way to the healer's," Suki said. "Follow me."

The Doctor turned to Rose and Jack. "You two, go with them."

"All three of you are going with them," Kyoshi said in a clear, firm voice.

The Doctor faced her. "You don't need to kill anyone else. There's a better way."

Kyoshi stared him down. It was hard to gauge her expression under the white makeup. She took a single step forward. "These men will be given the justice they are owed in accordance with the beliefs of their people."

"Which are," Jack asked.

"In the Southern Water Tribe, criminals of their caliber are stranded on ice floats, for their fates to be determined by the Moon and Ocean Spirits."

"So they're left to freeze to death," the Doctor said with a scowl.

"That is for the Moon and the Ocean to decide, if the Elders of the Southern Tribe deem him in need of their judgement."

"And the Airbender," Rose asked.

"The destruction of an Airbender's tattoos is a mark of banishment. It designates that the bearer of the black ink cannot step foot in any of their holy temples. This punishment is reserved for only the most heinous of crimes. I cannot return him to his people. To do so would be to desecrate the Air Temples."

"So you're going to kill him," the Doctor growled.

"I will hear what he has to say for himself, and then I will dispense justice. Only justice will bring peace." Kyoshi lowered the wall of flames keeping the Airbender contained. "Now, make your way to the healer's."

"You can't just dismiss us like schoolchildren," the Doctor said, struggling to keep the petulance out of his voice.

The ground beneath them shifted. They struggled to maintain their balance as the dirt moved them across the village. They fell in a heap at the door to the healing hut. "I think we've been dismissed," Jack said with a chuckle.

The Doctor glared at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember last chapter when Zuko was going to try to redirect lightning away from Mai and would've taken the full force of a lightning strike if Kyoshi hadn't shown up? Yeah, so does Mai. She's not happy.
> 
> Thanks for reading! Please share your thoughts below if you'd like. I'm particularly interested in how people feel about Kyoshi's characterization. Did you think it was accurate? Too harsh? Not harsh enough? Gimme your notes! :D


	5. Honor and Idiocy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Avatar Kyoshi knows a thing or two about a thing or two, and a pair of honorable idiots realize that they were not handling their life choices well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took forever. These 50+ hour workweeks are seriously cutting into my writing time. And then I had a couple of mornings off and I took advantage of discounts at work instead of using the time to write. I'm sorry, my dear devoted readers.
> 
> Here we go, the conclusion:

Zuko tried to sit up, but the healer put her hand on his bare chest and pushed him back down. "Lie still," she ordered in an annoyed tone of voice. She pulled out some sort of cream and started rubbing it into the scar from Azula's lightning.

Rose felt ill as she looked at the scar. It was such a gruesome and violent thing. Rose wondered just how much violence this actual child had been forced to endure. "Does that hurt," Rose whispered.

"It feels weird," Zuko muttered, talking about the topical medicine. He hadn't realized she was referring to the scar itself. "It's cold."

"Maybe you should learn not to go around picking fights with Firebenders," the healer admonished. "Before there's nothing left of you but scar tissue." The middle-aged woman continued to work the cream into Zuko's skin while he scowled at her.

"Your bedside manner is rubbish," the Doctor noted.

"I've seen too many young kids dead before their time because they picked fights they couldn't win," the healer said with rising frustration. "They all want to emulate the Avatar. They imagine themselves basking in glory, but in the end they just end up broken, if they're lucky. More often, they end up in the ground. What point were you trying to prove when your face got messed up?"

"I wasn't trying to prove a point," Zuko mumbled. "I didn't want to fight, so my dad gave me this to punish me."

Rose gasped, and the healer's hands stilled. Jack looked away from Zuko, trying to keep the unhelpful rage off of his features. The Doctor looked at Zuko's friends. The information didn't appear to be news to them.

"Well, still," the healer muttered.

"Still, what," Rose demanded. "Are you done picking on a teenager that didn't deserve to experience all this abuse but had to anyway?"

The healer blushed. Her complexion, which was midway between Sokka's and Suki's, hid some of her embarrassment, but not all of it. She gathered up the medication and left the room. Zuko sat up and looked at the ground.

Mai handed him his shirt. He gave her a look of gratitude and slipped it back on. He looked less grateful when she started talking. He looked terrified. "You were getting ready to redirect lightning earlier."

Zuko looked away. "He was going to kill you."

"What would have happened to your heart?"

"I don't kn-"

"Zuko." Mai cut him off with a very no-nonsense tone. Not that Mai ever allowed nonsense into her tone, but still.

"I think it would have stopped," he admitted in a quiet whisper. He flinched. He was ashamed of what he saw as a weakness. He felt guilty for letting everyone he loved down.

Mai was furious. "So you were just going to leave me? Again?"

"I couldn't let you get hurt! I had to protect you!" He rubbed his chest after shouting.

"If it's okay for you to protect me, then why won't you let me protect you?! Why couldn't you just tell me the truth?!"

Zuko stared at his hands. "Everyone is counting on me to restore the honor of the Fire Nation. I'm trying to heal the country while hiding the fact that I'm technically not even eligible for the throne. If people find out the truth, there will be another civil war. I'll go down in history as Zuko, the pretender, the most dishonorable claimant to the throne in Fire Nation history."

"More dishonorable than the guy who burned half of his son's face off?" Suki folded her arms over her chest and gave Zuko a skeptical look.

Zuko shrugged. "At least he didn't lie about it."

"You drive me crazy sometimes, do you know that," Sokka asked. "Do you really think that sacrificing your own health to save other people is less honorable than trying to burn down the entire world?"

Rose leaned over towards Jack to whisper in his ear. "We're adopting this kid."

"Absolutely," Jack agreed.

Zuko shook his head at Sokka. "You don't get it," he insisted.

"I do," the Doctor spoke up. "You had to make an impossible choice. No matter what you decide, innocent people might get hurt. You made the choice you thought would minimize suffering, even though it was the worst option for you, personally. I don't know much about your culture, I'm still learning, but for what it's worth, I think that's very honorable."

"So do I," Suki said.

"I still just think you're an idiot that needs to learn to talk to the people that love you," Mai said.

"The two aren't mutually exclusive," Sokka pointed out. "You are both honorable and an idiot."

"Isn't there anyone else that can rule the country," Jack asked. "Maybe someone who isn't a teenager with a medical condition exacerbated by stress?"

"There's my homicidal sister that suffers from hallucinations," Zuko suggested in a wry tone.

"That would be the famous Princess Azula," Rose guessed. "The one in a mental hospital?"

Zuko sighed. "She was our father's victim too. If she took the throne, the war would restart within hours. She wouldn't survive, and she'd take as many other people as possible down with her." Zuko tried to rub his chest again.

Mai took hold of his hand to prevent him. She squeezed his hand. "That isn't going to happen. You can do this Zuko, but you don't have to do it alone. You can let the people who love you, help you."

"You sound like Uncle," Zuko complained.

"Which should clue you in to the fact that I'm right, if that wasn't already obvious."

"You're right," Zuko said with a sigh. "Will you marry me?"

Mai dropped his hand and gaped at him. "What?"

"If I keep getting worse, I won't last much longer. If we get married and have a kid, then you can rule as regent until-"

"Zuko, stop!" Mai clenched her fists and glared at Zuko, face red with rage.

"You two aren't even old enough to get married," Rose protested.

"They're both over sixteen," Sokka said.

"That's not the point," Mai snapped, raising her voice in a way that wasn't very Mai. "How could you ask me that?!"

"You… don't want to marry me?" Zuko wore a heartbroken and resigned expression on his face.

"Not if you're only asking me because you think you're going to die! Not if I mean that little to you!"

"You mean everything to me!"

"Just not enough to be worth sticking around for!"

"Not that anyone around here values my opinion on anything," the Doctor said. "But you really shouldn't be working yourself into a state right now," he admonished Zuko.

Zuko threw his hands in the air. "You are all impossible! I ignore the problem, so I'm stupid. I try to fix the problem, so I'm stupid. What do you want from me?!"

"We want you to let us help you," Suki said, her voice sad. "We want you not to accept your death as an inevitability. We want you to fight for yourself as hard as you fight for everyone else."

" _ We _ want to fight for you," Sokka added.

"Let us fight for you," Mai begged.

"You're too young to have the weight of the world on your shoulders," Rose said.

"No one should have the weight of the world on their shoulders," the Doctor added. "It's a burden too large for any one person."

"But there's no one else!" Zuko used wild gesticulation to emphasize his point. "I'm the only one that the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom will accept as Firelord! If anyone not of Sozin's line takes the throne, there will be a Civil War! If- If-" Zuko tried to take a deep breath.

Rose rushed forward. "Don't talk," she ordered. She watched him draw in several quick shallow breaths.

"I'll go find that healer," Jack said.

Mai grabbed Zuko's hand. "Zuko, look at me." He obeyed. "Don't leave me again. Do you hear me?"

He nodded. He took a deep breath, held it for a moment and then let it out. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Mai wrapped her arms around him. "I love you, you honorable idiot."

Zuko hugged her back. "I love you too. I don't want to leave you. I really don't. I want to live. I just… am trying to prepare for the other possibility."

"Well don't," Rose snapped. "Your friends are right. You've been through enough. You've sacrificed enough. You don't need to sacrifice your life as well."

Someone came through the doorway, but it wasn't Jack and the healer. When they saw Avatar Kyoshi, Suki, Zuko, Sokka and Mai bowed. The Doctor crossed his arms and glared at her. Rose rolled her eyes at the Doctor.

"Now, I should like for you to tell me who you are and what you are doing here," Kyoshi suggested.

The teenagers all looked at the Doctor. He smirked. He was too old to be immature enough to take pleasure in people deferring to his judgement in front of someone who didn't respect said judgement. Never the less… He cleared his throat. "We're tourists."

"From the Earth Kingdom," Rose tacked on.

"We're in the Earth Kingdom," Suki corrected her in a mild tone.

"I thought we were on Kyoshi Island," Rose said.

"It isn't called that yet," Suki said with a sigh. "And it's in the Earth Kingdom."

Zuko locked eyes with Avatar Kyoshi. "We are travelers, that much is true. We came here to see the place where the Avatar was born. We have a great deal of respect and admiration for you."

"Overly liberal use of the word we," the Doctor grumbled.

"How dare you," Suki snapped. "You owe Avatar Kyoshi your life. You will show her the respect that she deserves."

Avatar Kyoshi held up a hand. "Peace, child. I have learned that those who demand respect are often the ones who least deserve it. Your friend is entitled to his opinions."

"He's no friend of mine," Suki muttered.

"There is more to your story," Kyoshi said. "I would hear it."

"Well, you can't always get what you want, can you?" The Doctor gave her a smug grin and quashed the tiny voice in his head that said he was being petulant.

"I know an Earthbender," Mai said. "She can tell whether or not someone is being truthful by feeling the vibrations of their heartbeat through the ground. Can you do that," she asked Kyoshi.

Kyoshi raised a brow. "Why? Are you planning on lying to me?"

Mai shook her head. "No, but the truth is unbelievable to anyone who can't be certain of it."

"Oi! Ixnay on the ruthtray," Rose said.

Kyoshi turned to Rose. "Loudly shouting to a compatriot to lie is not a good way to get away with it," she said with a small smile.

"Does the TARDIS also translate Pig Latin," Rose whispered to the Doctor.

"Yes," the Doctor said. "And also, what you were saying was obvious anyway."

"Do you think we can't hear you," Mai asked with honest wonder.

"It's their bit," Jack said from the doorway. "It never gets old, but then again, I'm biased." He grinned at Rose and the Doctor.

The healer bustled in after him. She started wagging her finger at Zuko. "Lay back down. You don't understand how serious your situation is. You need to refrain from physical exertion."

Sokka looked at Zuko. Zuko had always been pale, but there was no denying that he was paler than normal. "Why? What will happen to him if he doesn't?"

"His heart is too weak," the healer said, causing Zuko to flinch. "His life will be short, and shorter still for any strain he puts on his heart. If you keep fighting and engaging in other stressful activities, your remaining lifespan will be measured in months, not years." The healer folded her arms over her chest and glared at Zuko.

"Katara can fix this. I know she can," Sokka insisted. "When we get back, we'll send her a letter. None of this nonsense about bothering her," Sokka lectured. "An invitation to your funeral will be a much greater inconvenience."

Zuko looked at the ground. "But what if it doesn't work," he said in a soft voice.

Kyoshi turned to the healer. "Learned healer, I ask for your pardon. Can you give us the room?"

The healer bowed. "Of course, Avatar Kyoshi."

After the healer had departed, Kyoshi approached Zuko. She towered over him, but there was no fear in his eyes when he looked at her. "This wound to your heart, how did you come to acquire it?"

"I was fighting in an Agni Kai," Zuko answered.

"He jumped in front of a bolt of lightning," Sokka added. "The person he was fighting aimed at my sister, and he saved her life."

"That was a noble thing to do," Kyoshi said. She put her hand on top of the scar. The jagged lines peeked out between her long fingers. "Do you know what is said of Firebenders in the Earth Kingdom?"

Zuko shook his head. He knew what the people of the Earth Kingdom said about his country during and after the war. He couldn't begin to guess what they had said before. "No, Avatar Kyoshi."

"In the Earth Kingdom, many say the Children of Fire burn hot and fast. Their lives are full of passion, but oh so short. I don't think this is true. It certainly doesn't have to be. You have much to live for, little flame, not least of which, friends that adore you."

Kyoshi's hand glowed blue. Zuko took a deep and full breath. Kyoshi pulled her hand away.

"There are those who train for decades in the art of healing. They will be able to do more than I. The root problem is deep, deeper than I can reach. Still, I hope that you feel some relief."

Zuko held out his hand, palm facing up. A flame burst to life in it. His face was overtaken with joy and wonder. He took a deep breath, and the flame grew.

Jack whistled. "Can you teach me to do that?"

Mai leaned forward and kissed Zuko. Her lips pressed against the scar tissue on his face. "Don't ever keep something like this from me again," she whispered in his ear.

"I won't," Zuko promised. He turned to Kyoshi. "Thank you, Avatar Kyoshi. I owe you a great debt."

"You owe me nothing. You tried to defend my home." She turned to Suki. "You are brave and noble children. You each have reason to be proud of yourselves."

Suki's eyes welled up with tears. "Thank you," Suki whispered. Her voice cracked.

Kyoshi reached out and thumbed away Suki's tears. "It does my heart good to know I serve as an inspiration for such a kind-hearted and devoted warrior. I can only hope my own Kyoshi Warriors will learn to be as strong as you are." Kyoshi smiled at her.

"I'm sure they will," Sokka said. "I'm certain."

Rose elbowed the Doctor. He glared at her, so she kicked him in the shin. "Say something," she ordered in a whisper. "If you don't, I will."

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Thank you for helping our friend. It was kind of you to do so."

Kyoshi inclined her head in appreciation.

"I misjudged you," the Doctor continued. "I thought that you were someone who revels in bloodshed, but you're not. You… You're like me. You do what needs to be done, even when it's hard. I once had to make a very difficult decision, and I still haven't come to terms with it. I think I took those unresolved feelings out on you, and I'm sorry."

Kyoshi smiled. "Your apology is unneeded but accepted, Lord of Time."

The Doctor jumped. "How did you- How could you- What- How- Huh?"

"You know what I love the most about you," Jack asked the Doctor. "Your eloquence."

"There is an old legend among the Air Nomads, of a spirit that travels in time. She is a strange creature with golden hair. She journeys in a blue box with a young monk and a strange tall man. She is often seen at events of great historical importance, but she never intervenes. She only watches."

Sokka gasped. "A young monk! Aang! Oh, it's Aang. You can show him all the things he never got a chance to learn. You can help him rebuild the-"

"Sokka, shut up!" Zuko kicked him in the ankle.

"I think the octocat is out of the bag, Zuko," Suki said. She looked at Avatar Kyoshi with shining eyes. "You figured us out. You're brilliant."

"I'm not saying that Avatar Kyoshi isn't extremely intelligent," Mai said. "But I would say the explanation is more that you are all terrible liars."

"It's a sign of good character," Jack suggested.

"You just keep telling yourself that," Rose said with a pat to his shoulder.

"I think it would be best if the four of you returned to your own time," Kyoshi said to the children. "Though it was a great pleasure to make your acquaintance." Kyoshi bowed to them.

The children returned the polite bow with much deeper ones. Kyoshi smiled at them. She then turned to the Doctor and his friends. "You three are not like any spirits I have ever encountered before."

"No," the Doctor said. "I don't think we would be."

"You might say that we're out of this world," Jack suggested. Rose rolled her eyes and shoved him. He just laughed and kissed her cheek. He smiled at Kyoshi. "I have to say, watching you in action was an honor and a privilege."

"Thank you," Kyoshi said with an indulgent smile. She focused on the Doctor. "We have met before, in another life, so I know that we will meet again. Be well, Lord of Time."

The Doctor bowed. He did a much better job than he had last time. "Thank you, Avatar Kyoshi."

Kyoshi smiled at Rose. "You have a good heart, child. Do not let the bad wolf devour you."

"The bad wolf?" Rose tilted her head to the side.

"When the time comes, you will understand. I must assist in the repairs and then take my prisoner to the Southern Water Tribe. I wish you all a safe journey." Kyoshi departed.

The seven of them had a lot to think about as they made their way back to the TARDIS. Mai and Zuko held hands. Sokka stared lovingly at the stars in Suki's eyes. Rose grabbed a hand from both Jack and the Doctor. "Let's just keep them."

"They need to go home," the Doctor said.

"You said it yourself, they shouldn't have the weight of the world on their shoulders."

"Zuko needs his healing friend to take a look at his heart. Kyoshi said the root problem was much deeper," Jack reminded her.

"But-"

"We'll come back," the Doctor promised as he unlocked the TARDIS. "You know we will. The Airbenders tell stories about your strange yellow hair." He gave her an impish grin.

"Fine," Rose huffed. She turned to the kids as the Doctor started fiddling with the controls. "You lot look out for each other, alright? Keep each other safe."

"Always," Suki promised.

"When we get back, how long will we have been gone," Sokka asked. "We traveled in time, so can we travel back to the moment we left? Could we theoretically land a second before we left and watch ourselves disappear?!" His face lit up with excitement.

Jack and the Doctor both pointed at Sokka. "He's my favorite."

Sokka beamed. Suki gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "Mine too."

Mai and Zuko looked at each other. They rolled their eyes. "The impropriety," Mai said with disdain.

Zuko snickered. "Disgraceful," he agreed.

"We'll arrive three seconds after we left," the Doctor explained while everyone else rolled their eyes at Zuko and Mai. He pulled a final lever.

The TARDIS shook, but everyone kept their balance. When they arrived, the Doctor threw open the doors with a dramatic flourish. "Welcome home!"

The teenagers exited the TARDIS. Zuko frowned. "Something feels wrong."

The door to the room flew open. Toph ran inside. "They're in here! I told you I felt something strange!"

"Toph!" Sokka grinned. "You won't believe-"

Katara ran into the room and tackled her brother with a hug. "Where have you been?!"

Toph slugged Zuko in the arm. "You were gone for three days!"

Jack smiled at the Doctor. "Seconds and days are so easy to mix up," he said in a patronizing tone.

Aang and Ty Lee ran in. Ty Lee hugged Mai tight. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

Aang hugged Suki and Zuko. "We've been looking everywhere for you!"

"We thought you were kidnapped," Katara admonished.

Zuko glared at the Doctor from over Aang's head. "I've been gone for three days! What's happened?! Was there a coup? Is anyone hurt?"

"Everything is fine; we kept your disappearance under wraps," Katara assured him. "But who are these people? What did they do to you?"

The Doctor looked at Rose. "I am not doing this again. It was bad enough with just your mother. I got slapped!"

"What," Katara said.

The Doctor yanked Rose and Jack back into the TARDIS. "We'll see you again soon!" He slammed the doors shut behind him. "So," the Doctor said as he began to fiddle with the controls. "Who wants to go to Japan?"

Two hands shot into the air. "Will there be volcanoes," Rose asked in an innocent voice.

"And the proper number of elements," Jack added.

"Hush." The Doctor input the coordinates, and they were off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all folks! Or is it? This is a series now! I haven't decided what order to write the series in yet. It can follow the Doctor's timeline, or the GAang's. I put a poll on my Tumblr (electronswrites) where you guys can vote on your preference.
> 
> Thanks for reading! Please share your thoughts below, good, bad or indifferent.

**Author's Note:**

> You can go to  
> https://electronswrites.tumblr.com/  
> for more info on all fics.


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